One year I had a bowling party. The bowling alley gave me a bowling pin, which I promptly dropped on my toe. Another year I had a skating party. Being rather shy, I was mortified when the skating rink (and my parents) made me skate out alone. The disc jockey mispronounced my name, and I fell trying to skate back in.

It wasn’t until I was an adult that I realized birthdays are awesome. You mostly get your way. Sometimes there are gifts. Even better, loads of retailers and restaurants give you free stuff, especially if you sign up to get emails from them.

In fact, I spend most of my birthday running around town collecting freebies – far from a curse.

If you have a birthday coming up, check out our list of free food, desserts, drinks, clothing, makeup and entertainment. It’s enough to keep you busy all day.

Do you have a favorite birthday freebie we forgot to mention? Share it on our Facebook page.

It's not the usual blah, blah, blah

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